GAINESVILLE,
Fla. -- Erin Tucker knows an
elite-level hurdler when he sees one. He was one.

An
assistant coach with Florida's track team, 15 years ago the former UF
All-American captured the 400-meter hurdles title at the Southeastern
Conference Championships.

When
Tucker returned to his alma mater two years ago to work with the Gators' stable
of hurdlers, he was confused when studying the times of Ugonna Ndu.

Tucker
checked with Florida's coaching staff to make sure the times were right or if
Ndu was injured.

"I
don't understand why she didn't run faster,'' Tucker told them.

Yes,
the times were right, and no, Ndu was not injured.

For
Tucker it was like hitting the hurdler lottery.

In his
eyes the tall, lean, athletic Ndu had potential to be a standout for the Gators
and perhaps one day compete for a national championship. He worked closely with
her on technique and Ndu implemented a seven-step takeoff instead of the
eight-step approach she was used to.

The
transformation took time. There were false starts, frustration and missteps.
They kept at it throughout Ndu's junior season a year ago. She improved to the
point where Ndu thought she could earn a berth on the Nigerian National Team
and compete in the London Olympics last summer.

Both of
Ndu's parents are from Nigeria and came to the U.S. for college. Ndu grew up in
Union, N.J., and developed into a hurdler that both Florida and Florida State
chased on the recruiting trail.

As a
late bloomer Ndu was lightly recruited coming out of high school and knew very
little about the NCAA, SEC or the Gators-Seminoles rivalry. Recruited by former
UF assistant Brian O'Neal, Ndu said the "letters started pouring in"
once word got out that both Florida and Florida State were interested in her.

O'Neal
quickly arranged a campus visit after contacting Ndu.

"I
said bye to Florida State and hello to Florida,'' Ndu said.

Four
years later Ndu is about to say goodbye to the Gators as she enters the NCAA
Championships starting today in Eugene, Ore. The meet is meaningful in more ways than
one for Ndu, who turns 22 later this month.

She
wants to finish out her UF career with a strong performance and is confident
she can compete for national titles in the 100-meter hurdles and 400-meter
hurdles.

"I'm
trying to win,'' she said. "I feel like I can go faster."

The
meet also serves as a dose of redemption for Ndu, who missed out on the NCAA
Finals a year ago and her bid to qualify for a potential shot at making the
Nigerian National Team that competed in London.

The
sting of last summer's disappointment fueled Ndu's senior season with the
Gators.

"I
was really looking forward to competing for them last year and since it didn't
happen, it really motivated me to really get it this year since it's a World
[Championships] year,'' Ndu said. "The opportunity to be there is like a
dream come true."

Once
her collegiate career ends this week, Ndu is scheduled to leave for Nigeria
next week for the country's trials to make the World Championship team set to
compete in Russia in August.

Life is
moving fast for Ndu, who arrived in Eugene coming off perhaps her strongest
all-around meet at the SEC Championships at Missouri in early May.

Ndu
broke a 28-year-old school record in the 400-meter hurdles by finished second
with a time of 56.12 seconds, eclipsing the UF record set by Piper Bressant in
1985. In the 100-meter hurdles, Ndu posted a personal-best time of 13.14
seconds, finishing third with the fifth-best time in UF history.

Through
it all, Tucker clapped and cheered as Ndu performed the way he envisioned when
he first noticed those slow times and tried to figure out how to help Ndu reach
her potential.

"I
don't know if she believed me when I was telling her what she could do,''
Tucker said. "She probably thought I was trying to motivate her like
coaches do, but I actually saw a year ago what we are seeing now. I just think
it's her growing up a little bit and understanding and believing that she can
actually do exactly what I was telling her what she could do."

Ndu
said the light started to go off for her at the Florida Relays when she
eclipsed her then-personal-best marks in both the 100 hurdles (13.20 seconds)
and 400 hurdles (57.44). Since then Ndu has continued to improve her seven-step
takeoff and shave numbers off her time.

The
thought of last summer's disappointment ran with her the whole way.

"I
knew I could stand on the line with those girls,'' Ndu said. "I'm excited
and really trying to make something happen in my last track meet for the
Gators."

It has
been 31 years since the Gators women's track team last had a hurdler national
champion: Lori Dinello won the 100-meter hurdles in 1982. Dinello is the only
one.

Ndu
would like to be the next. If she is, Tucker won't be surprised. Not after what
he has witnessed Ndu accomplish in the past year.